Watch: New Hampshire Boy Sets 5K World Record for 10-Year-Olds

When Aidan Cox ran a 17:24 at the SEA 5K in Concord, New Hampshire, Saturday and set a pending world 5K best for 10-year-olds, he wasn’t trying for a record. He was just taking advantage of an opportunity to challenge himself on a fast course. His time surpassed the existing record, set by William Pluma in 2000, by 24 seconds.

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It wasn’t until after the race that his parents, Tim and Jen Cox of Northwood, New Hampshire, decided it was time to tell him—not only had he just broken the record for 10-year-olds, he also set the record for 9-year-olds, 18:03, one year earlier at the same race.

(This video shows Aidan’s finish, starting at 27 seconds.)

They hadn’t told him because they don’t want him worrying about times, splits, or records. He runs because he enjoys it, and his parents want to keep it that way.

Aidan was getting enough attention for his latest race, however, that his parents figured he was going to find out sooner or later, and they didn’t want to be dishonest with him. So they showed him the young record holders on the Association of Road Racing Statisticians’ listing of single-age 5K records.

“One of the first things I said was, ‘Have you ever heard of any of these guys?’ And he was like, ‘Not really,’” Tim Cox told Runner’s World by phone. “I was like, ‘Well there’s a reason for that. A lot of times they train for these things and they might burn out or they might be guided in a way that [later] they don’t want to run. The last thing we want to do is that.’”

Aidan, a fifth grader, took the news in stride.

“He thinks it’s cool, but he didn’t even mention it today (two days after the race),” Cox said. “He’s 10 years old and what’s more important to him is watching SportsCenter to see if the Celtics won and making sure he gets his time to run, play basketball, do his homework, or be with his friends. He didn’t even know what his time was on Saturday.”

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Running, however, has long been part of the Cox household. Tim is a co-head coach of a local high school cross-country and track team, Coe-Brown Northwood Academy, so all of the Cox children have grown up around running.

Aidan’s 13-year-old sister, Addison, is the reigning New Hampshire small schools state champion in cross country. Tim ran a 9:14 3200 meters in high school and was a 14:46 5,000-meter runner in college. Jen was an accomplished tennis player in high school, but also ran a 21-minute 5K in her twenties. Tim says it will be up to Broden, who is 4 and a half, if and when he wants to start running more formally.

Aidan and Addison run for the NH Thunder and a middle school team, and Tim Cox credits the coaches for keeping the emphasis on fun and being outdoors in nature.

“They’re really responsible for this little enclave that they’ve built here of kids ages anywhere from 6 to 12 or 13, before they get to Coe-Brown,” Cox said. “Most of their training runs are on the trails in the woods, jumping off of rocks, jumping into watering holes, having contests to see how many kids can hit a tree with a rock—just little things like that to keep it fun. It’s a little bit different than what the rest of the country is doing, and even track clubs in our own state, but it’s what we feel is best for the kids at this point and it seems to be working out pretty well.”

When Tim Cox talks about his children’s training, it’s more about setting limits than trying to hit certain targets.

“Aidan and Addison would run all day if we let them,” Cox said. “It’s becoming more and more of a battle. They just love it so much.”

Aidan tends to run six days a week, from anywhere from 30 to 60 minutes, sticking to trails and dirt roads when he can.

“I like running because I can explore. It is something fun I can do with my family and friends,” Aidan wrote in an email to Runner’s World.

When Tim and Jen Cox think about their children’s running futures, their greatest hope is to keep their love of running alive.

“We’re looking long term—and understand what looking long-term means. It doesn’t mean college, the Olympics, or any of that stuff,” Tim Cox said. “It means a lifelong sport that they enjoy. If that other stuff comes along, that’s ridiculous to even think about at this stage. It’s about teaching them a lifelong activity that they can hopefully fall back on at many different times in their lives.”

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